Articles written by Saratoga Sun Editorial


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  • We need to determine the threshold

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Nov 2, 2023

    In the past three years, the amount of short term rentals in the Saratoga area have grown from less than 25 to more than 70. In fact, they are now nearly 8% of the total housing in Saratoga. For the past year, the Saratoga Planning Commission has discussed short term rentals, whether they should be regulated and how they should be regulated. That discussion culminated in a special use permit for short term rentals, which was ultimately tabled last month. The tabling of the permit came following input from the Town of Saratoga’s legal counsel,... Full story

  • Winds of Change

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Mar 23, 2023

    While change is seldom welcomed, it is often necessary. It may appear from the outside looking in we are playing musical chairs here at the Saratoga Sun, but things are beginning to settling down into a routine here. As your new editor/publisher I—Virginia Parker—hope you, our readers and advertisers, will be patient with us. Joshua Wood, the operations director, is training and cross-training the entire three person team which currently makes up the Saratoga Sun crew. He can't stay with us forever, so we are working hard to learn all we...

  • Time to admit there's a problem

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Feb 23, 2023

    When overcoming an addiction, the first step is admitting there’s a struggle. The same is also true for a community to overcome a problem with drugs. The Platte Valley has a dilemma with drugs.. The increased number of drug arrests during the time the Saratoga Police Department had a K9 unit was evidence of this. It became obvious when two young people lost their lives. Though the cause of death is still unconfirmed, the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office suspects a fentanyl overdose. The Valley has many wonderful things about it. From the... Full story

  • Events ordinance needs more time

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|May 12, 2022

    Saratoga is growing. This is a fact. Whether you look at the updated signs at Saratoga Town Limits, try to find a home to buy or place to rent the evidence is there. With growth also comes change. Ten years ago, an agreement was reached between the Town of Saratoga and The Yard—a music venue owned by Cindy Bloomquist and Chris Shannon—in the form of Chapter 5.30 of the Saratoga Municipal Code. This chapter of the town’s code came as a result of a number of public meetings and discussions involving the community over a two year period.... Full story

  • Your community needs you

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|May 5, 2022

    Do you have what it takes to be a public servant? Next week—May 12—marks the start of the filing period for the 2022 Primary Election. In recent elections, the Saratoga Sun has encouraged our readers to head to the polls in both primary and general elections to cast their votes. What should be equally stressed is the need for people to run for those offices in the first place, especially at the local level. After all, there could be a great turnout of voters but it means little if there is nobody to vote for. Just two years ago, during the... Full story

  • Welcome to Thursday

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Mar 17, 2022

    If you received your newspaper on a Thursday, there’s no need to worry. The mail wasn’t late this week. Instead, this week marks the Saratoga Sun’s return to Thursday publication. We have switched to a new printer, one in eastern Wyoming, in our continued efforts to provide you with the best product we can each week. When we use the term return in regards to Thursday publication, it may be confusing to some of our readers. It may seem to some that the Sun has published on Wednesday forever. Long-time Saratoga locals, however, can tell... Full story

  • Redistricting has us concerned

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Dec 22, 2021

    Growing, growing, gone? That seems to be the direction for House District 47 as the Wyoming Legislature, particularly the Joint Corporations Committee, continues their most recent redistricting efforts. What is currently the largest district in the state of Wyoming—12,188 square miles—appears to be on the chopping block as legislators attempt to go through their once-in-a-decade process of redistricting.  We would like to first preface our concerns by stating we can appreciate the difficult task the legislators of the Joint Corporations Co... Full story

  • Don't wait, vaccinate

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Dec 8, 2021

    Nearly two years since the global pandemic began, the newest variant of the coronavirus (COVID-19) has been detected in the United States.  We are still learning about omicron, the most recent variant first discovered in South Africa. Both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have classified it as a Variant of Concern. Due to its early detection, it is still unclear if this variant is more severe than the original coronavirus or if it’s more transmissible. According to both organizations, while there... Full story

  • Walking the talk

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Oct 20, 2021

    It isn’t a secret how busy the intersection of 1st Street and Bridge Avenue in Saratoga is on any given day.  Wyoming Highway 130, which becomes 1st Street once it enters town limits, is the route to the Snowy Range, the Sierra Madres and Northern Colorado. For that reason, vehicles of all shapes and sizes—from sedans to recreational vehicles to semi-trucks—make their way through the center of town. This, however, also creates a safety issue. We at the Saratoga Sun would like to commend Councilmember Jon Nelson for speaking with the... Full story

  • After the party, it's time to clean up

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Jul 7, 2021

    Independence Day has passed and the largest party in Saratoga every summer has concluded. From the Festival of the Arts to the Old Fashioned Family Carnival to, yes, even Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band headlining Saratoga Days it appeared to be a successful weekend. Thought that may depend on how one defines success. Was it economically beneficial to the restaurants and businesses on Bridge Avenue? Yes, we would imagine so. When not taking part in the fun family games on West Bridge Avenue or the increasing festivities on East... Full story

  • Pickett Park must be built

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|May 19, 2021

    This summer will mark 13 years since Staff Sergeant Tyler Pickett lost his life to a suicide bomber in Iraq. Since then, the promise of a memorial park for the Saratoga High School graduate has gone unfulfilled.  Hopefully, that will be changing soon. A member of the Class of 2000, Tyler Pickett was 28 years old when he was in Iraq on June 8, 2008. By all rights, he should have been home as he was originally supposed to be on leave at that time. However, his leave had been deferred. Pickett would end up being the first and only Carbon County d... Full story

  • Thank you for your public service

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Apr 21, 2021

    It’s not easy serving the public. This was made clear on April 6, when Bob Keel resigned his position from the Saratoga Town Council. Keel, in his resignation letter, stated that he was choosing his family over the council. The Saratoga Sun applauds him for making such a difficult decision and wishes him well in his new venture. There may be many in the community who are disappointed that Keel did not finish out his four year term. A look into Saratoga’s past, however, shows that it is not at all uncommon for people to take their leave at... Full story

  • Public notices must remain accessible

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Feb 17, 2021

    When the Wyoming Legislature reconvenes in March, the perennial battle to keep public notices in Wyoming newspapers will return as well.  On February 4, the Senate Corporation Committee voted 4-1 to advance to the Wyoming Senate legislation that would remove the requirement for counties and municipalities to publish minutes and salary information in newspapers. Senate File 17 was crafted under the guise of saving the counties and municipalities money during much needed budget crunches. During the nearly two hour meeting, which be found at... Full story

  • Recognizing women

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Feb 3, 2021

    "... Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did. She just did it backwards and in high heels." ~ Ann Richards It's been more than 150 years since Wyoming gave all women the right to vote and earned it's official moniker as the "Equality State" and it's been nearly 100 years since Wyoming elected its first, and to-date only, woman governor; Nellie Tayloe Ross. This year, Wyoming elected its first woman senator, Cynthia Lummiss, and re-elected Liz Cheney, who is only the second woman to... Full story

  • Legals: A light in the shadows

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Oct 21, 2020

    Wyoming legislators, under the guise of “cost saving measures” for local governments, are again attempting to remove vital legal notices from the pages of your local newspaper. Though the Wyoming Legislature is not in session and many legislators will not return to the capitol in January following primary defeats, they are still working on interim topics. One of those topics, approved on a 10-3 vote by the Joint Corporations Committee on September 11, would remove the requirement for municipal and county governments to publish meeting minut... Full story

  • Want change? Run for office

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Jul 29, 2020

    The date of the 2020 Primary Election draws ever closer and, soon, voters will be going to the ballot to make their choice on who they want to move forward to the General Election to represent them. While there are plenty of choices on the national level—a total of 16 people are running for United States Senate between both Democratic and Republican candidates—the options are far more slim the closer one gets to local government with a few exceptions. In Encampment, three people are running for town council and, in Saratoga, that number... Full story

  • Notices will stay ... for now

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Mar 11, 2020

    Last month, the Saratoga Sun informed our readers of three pieces of legislation that had made their way through the House of Representatives and were headed to the Senate (see “Your right to know is at stake” on page 4 of the February 19 Saratoga Sun). Since then, we have kept an eye on that legislation. On Wednesday, all three bills were overwhelmingly passed by the Senate. The bills were then sent over to the House of Representatives for concurrence to determine if the House agreed with changes made by the Senate. All three bills passed... Full story

  • Your right to know is at stake

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Feb 19, 2020

    Much like a bad penny, attempts by the Wyoming Legislature to remove public notices from the pages of Wyoming newspapers, and leading to less informed constituents, have returned. Despite the failure of three similar bills last year, these bills—HB0050, HB0051 and HB0052—would amend Wyoming State Statute to where the only notice required would be on the state procurement website. On Friday, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved these three bills. These pieces of legislation, having now passed the House, will go onto the... Full story

  • The Sun thanks you

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Jan 8, 2020

    It has been said that a community needs its newspaper. This is true. The community often depends upon its local paper from coverage of high school sports to reporting on the actions of the town council and everything in between. The newspaper, in many ways, serves as the conscience and the heart of the community. What’s not stated as often, but perhaps should be, is that a newspaper needs its community. Any newspaper that strives to succeed realizes this and a good community newspaper should have involvement from its readers. Much like a... Full story

  • An appropriate response

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Dec 11, 2019

    We at the Saratoga Sun would like to applaud Hanna Marshal Jeff Neimark and extend to him our gratitude. Last week, the Sun reported on an incident that took place in Medicine Bow involving an armed suspect. For approximately 20 years, this small town at the intersection of Carbon, Natrona and Albany counties has been without local law enforcement and has relied upon the Carbon County Sheriff’s Department. While they are attempting to get a law enforcement program started again, Medicine Bow is left unprepared for situations such as the one... Full story

  • An economical idea

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Nov 20, 2019

    For quite some time, it has been apparent that one of the major economic drivers for Saratoga and the Upper North Platte Valley has been tourism. While both the extraction and energy industries have been top employers in the area, many locals are employed either in the service or retail industry. In fact, according to a study done for the Wyoming Office of Tourism, there were over 1,500 jobs in Carbon County as a result of the tourism industry. This has been a study increase since 2007, when 1,470 jobs in the county were attributed to the touri... Full story

  • Some Halloween tips

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Oct 23, 2019

    While the snow we keep on receiving makes it appear that winter cut the line ahead of fall, we are still very much in the autumn season. Next week, Valley residents should prepare themselves for quite a fright. Ghosts, goblins and ghouls will be out on the streets. Witches and warlocks will be out in broad daylight! Halloween has the potential to be a fun and exciting time of the year, but it can go bad in a hurry. We at the Saratoga Sun would like to take a few moments to give our costumed kiddos, those passing through town, and those passing...

  • Fondly remembered

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Aug 7, 2019

    We lost a fine soul last weekend. Keith McLendon was more than an employee at a newspaper. He was a staunch supporter of the community and an advocate for his employees. Keith won numerous awards for his service and artistic abilities, but it was not the awards he pursued, it was verification that he was doing a good job on your behalf. He may have ruffled a few feathers along the way...it comes with the territory. He always had what was best for citizens of the valley in mind. Keith was one of the most entertaining guys to sit with and have a...

  • A Saratoga disaster

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Jul 17, 2019

    On Friday, the Saratoga Care Center held its annual federally mandated disaster drill which involved the complete evacuation of the facility, a bomb going off, two woundings, a fatality and a hostage. At last year’s drill, members of the Saratoga Police and Fire Departments showed up along with a SCWEMS ambulance crew. That ambulance crew included, now, mayor of Saratoga John Zeiger. Mr. Zeiger was also the Carbon County Emergency Coordinator at the time and, in that capacity, has run or assisted in these types of disaster simulations. He is... Full story

  • An ounce of prevention ...

    Saratoga Sun Editorial|Jun 26, 2019

    Chances are, by the time this editorial is being read, Saratoga will be “in the clear” as far as threat of flooding. With the alternating of warm and cool weather, the amount of run-off from the mountains into the North Platte River has been fairly regulated. Despite that there was still some risk of flooding for the area. Over the weekend of June 14, the smokebusters from the Newcastle Honor Conservation Camp came to the Valley and filled over 9,000 sandbags. This, combined with the 2,000 sandbags that were already filled, came to a total... Full story

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